A Unlikely Alliance
by Nemisses
Summary: Ziva is Vance's protection detial during a what turns out to be deadly conference.
1. Chapter 1

For the first time I have completely finished a multiple chapter story before posting it. I would like thank surferdude who despite her annoyance with Vance read the first rough draft of this story. I took pity on her and send the full version to Vicky, who despite her very busy work schedule beta-read this one for me. It will contain 6 chapters. I am pretty content with it. So read, enjoy and leave a review.

**Chapter 1**

Vance and Ziva were sitting side by side in the airplane which was currently on route to Los Angeles. The Director was attending a conference and had requested that Agent David accompany him due to the fact that a lot of foreign dignitaries were going to attend and he needed a translator. And because Agent David spoke nine different languages the choice was easily made. This way he didn't need to get another one each and every time he was in a meeting with one of the attending agencies.

He found her to be good company. She didn't talk unless spoken to. He had agents accompany him often mostly because they were his protection detail. He also had some of them with him because he needed their skills for one of his jobs and right now he needed David for her uncanny ability to speak so many different languages. He didn't even want to know what she could do to those who were trying to harm him. He guessed her Mossad training prevented her from speaking without being told to by a superior officer in the room or in this case a plane. But maybe she didn't talk to him because he was the only connection to her father and he knew how wonderfully great they got along.

'Would you mind getting me something to drink, Agent David?'

'No sir, not at all'

She signaled the second agent that accompanied the Director and before he knew it she switched places and was heading towards the little kitchen area where the flight attendants prepared the drinks. She reappeared within minutes and placed an orange juice in his cup holder.

'Why did you bring me this?'

'Your wife'

'My wife?'

'Yes Director, your wife'

'Crap'

He saw David raising an eyebrow.

'What did she tell you?'

'You went back to work to soon after the whole bomb incident and serving you alcohol wouldn't be good for you'

'Did she give you instructions?'

'Yes'

'What were those?'

'To watch you like a hawk, to make sure you ate well, are well rested and to keep you safe.'

'Are you planning on doing so, Agent David?'

'Yes Director'

'Just as long as it doesn't interfere with my duties you may do so'

'She told me you would say that. However I have no intentions to interfere with your duties, Director. Just as long as you do as you are told.'

'Excuse me?'

'Your wife again, Sir. Apparently she gave you plenty of instructions which you should follow or else you are not allowed to ever leave the house ever again until you are fully recovered.'

'She covered all the angles, didn't she Agent David?'

'Yes Director, she did'

The rest of the flight was silent. Vance read up on several of the dignitaries and gave some of the Intel to David so she could be read in. As she was reading herself in she gave some pointers to him which he found extremely useful.

'You know some of them, don't you?'

'Yes'

'How?'

'I often accompanied my father to official gatherings, he used my languages skills to get a…' she paused for a moment 'heads up' Vance nodded so she knew she got that idiom right.

'I must confess I am doing the same'

'I know'

'I am just being honest with you'

'I appreciate that'

The conversation died down again and for the rest of the journey they were silent. Vance made a mental note to ask David on these trips more often. He liked her company. She didn't feel the need to flatter him to advance her career and when she did speak intelligent sentences came out. She also knew how to play the political game, hell she was probably even better at it then he was, she had been born and breed into this game. Eli trained her well, very well.

The first stop they made after the plane had landed was the NCIS; LA headquarters. Vance walked into Hetty's office; well it wasn't exactly an office but more of a corner with a desk in it and sat down. He was a little early due to Agent David's 'skilled' driving so he had some time to kill. He sat down and waited for Hetty to arrive. Ziva was not leaving his side and stood there quietly looking everywhere but at him.

'Agent David, you can relax now. I believe I am quiet safe here. You may stand down. Go and grab a bite to eat and report back to me in two hours when we are heading to the hotel we're staying at'

She didn't move.

'Agent David, did you not hear me?'

'Yes, however the last time a NCIS director told me to stand down I found her body in the desert not too far from here so if you will forgive me I choose not to obey such orders this time'

The clearing of a throat could be heard before Vance had a change to rebuke. Hetty stood there with a big grin on her face.

TBC….now you have read I would like to know what you think. So review.


	2. Chapter 2

Here is chapter 2. Thanks to all those who took the time to leave a review. It's much appreciated. This chapter is also beta-read by Vicky who is hopefully resting from a very busy week. If there any language mistakes left they are all mine. Read, enjoy and leave a review.

**Chapter 2**

'I see you have met your match, Leon'

Vance rose from his seat and proceeded to introduce Ziva to Hetty.

'Hetty meet Agent David, Agent David meet Henrietta Lang or better known as Hetty.'

Hetty extended her hand to Agent David.

'Agent David it's an honor and a privilege to finally meet you in the flesh after all these years talking to you via mail or the MTAC screen' Hetty switched to French rather fast but Ziva wasn't at all surprised by this since they had met onscreen several times and they had fun talking to one another in several languages. Hetty didn't not know as many as Ziva did but her French was a delight.

'Excuse me Ladies' Vance interrupted. 'I need some alone time with Hetty. Agent David, if you'll excuse us'

Ziva nodded and quietly removed herself from the corner 'office'. She went to a small seating area where she poured herself some tea and sat down. She positioned herself in such a way that she had clear view of Vance who was talking to Hetty in a rather amicable way.

'Agent David, isn't it?' Callen extended his hand. 'Finally we meet face to face'

She looked up and saw agent Callen standing near her.

'Yes' She shook his hand. 'Just Ziva will do, Agent Callen' she smiled.

'In that case just Callen will do for you, Ziva'

'You accompanying Director Vance?'

'Yes, I am'

Callen sat down next to her. He watched her for a moment.

'How have you been?'

'Fine'

'Then how come we play chess with one another when we are both supposed to be asleep?'

'You don't sleep either, you take bat naps'

'Catnaps'

'Whatever'

She sighed. Callen had been a steady factor in her nightlife since she returned from Somalia. She would have terrible nightmares and because of it, her nights were long and more often than not, sleepless. Callen had mentioned once during one of their MTAC meetings that he found it difficult to find a worthy opponent to play chess with. She had volunteered and so began their nightly game of chess. She would make a move during her sleepless night and he did in return when he couldn't sleep or in between one of his famous catnaps that wouldn't last longer than 20 minutes. Their chess games had become quite famous in the LA office since Callen would sometimes sit and ponder a move for hours. Sam often laughed and said that Ziva was one of the very view women if not the only one who could make Callen sit at one place longer than anyone ever had.

'I take whatever sleep I can get, some nights have been a bliss other nights have been hell'

Ziva felt she could speak freely to Callen since he knew about her nightmares anyway. In her e-mails to him she would tell him every now and then about what they were about. In his e-mails to her he would tell her about his quest to find whatever remained of his so called family. Sometimes it's easier to talk to someone who is many miles away then it is face to face.

'Have you had your medical checkup already?' said Callen. Ziva had mentioned in one of her mails that she was due for another medical checkup this week. She had been to the doctor just before she left town with Vance.

'Yes'

'And'

'What'

'You are avoiding the subject'

'Yes, I am still a junkie even after all this time I still have trace amounts of drugs inside my bloodstream. Saleem tried every drug-experiment he could come up with just to make me talk'

'You are not a Junkie and you know that. Does Vance know?' asked Callen.

'Yes, he gets an update after each and every visit. He is satisfied just as long as the numbers go down and once again they did'

'But you want them to go down faster'

'Yes'

'Patience'

'I don't have any left where this is concerned'

'Well in that case….' Callen stood up, walked to his desk and took out a chess board.

'Taadaaa!' He held the board up triumphantly above his head.

'You didn't mail me another move'

'No I didn't, I figured I might leave one on your desk this time'

'What' Called walked over to his desk and there it was a little piece of paper taped to his laptop.

'Damn, I didn't anticipated this kind of a bold move' Callen sat down and before he knew it he was so engrossed into the game he didn't even notice Ziva and Vance leaving.

Ziva left with a smile on her face, knowing she had Callen cornered this time. Game, set and checkmate she thought, a smile gracing her face.

Vance and Ziva arrived at the hotel they would be staying at and after Vance made it clear to Ziva he had a protection detail just outside his room. She finally left him alone and went to her own room down the hall. Two guards were standing at Vance's door and Ziva was now satisfied enough to take a bath. She wasn't supposed to show up again until breakfast the following day. After the bath which lasted almost an hour and half she was truly relaxed and was currently flipping through the channels of the TV in her room. It didn't take long before she grew tired after a long day of being on edge. She wanted to make this work. She wanted to make a good impression on Vance after all he was the one that had said she was broken goods, no he had said damaged goods.

She had asked Tony once what that meant; she wasn't entirely sure but after he explained the expression to her she had been quiet for the remainder of the day. Even Gibbs had noticed it and had even asked her if she was alright.

After her I am fine sentence the others knew not to bother her anymore. Her I am fine actually meant leave me alone. She switched off the TV of and took a quick look outside her door to see if the protection detail assigned to Vance's door was still on guard. One of the guards saw her and gave her a thumbs up. She smiled and nodded. She decided to go to sleep because it was going to be a busy day tomorrow. She placed a call to the reception desk to wake her up at 05.30 and turned in for the night.

At 05.30 the call came but Ziva was up already. She thanked the receptionist and after a quick shower she put on her clothes and placed one of her knives in a place where it wouldn't be discovered that easily. Why she wanted to carry extra protection she didn't know but something in the back of her mind kept nagging at her. She closed the door behind her and was on her way to collect Vance, they had a breakfast meeting at 07.00 and she wanted to be early so she could take a look around, so she could get a feel for the place. She knew that the others had already secured the place but still one can never be too cautious.

She knocked on his door and after she heard him say enter she opened the door. Vance was struggling with his tie and was starting to lose his patience. He seemed nervous for some reason however Ziva decided not to mention this.

'If I may, Sir'

Ziva quickly made the tie look the way it was suppose to look and turned away from him so he could take a look in the mirror. Vance nodded.

'Thanks, Agent David'

'Who will we be meeting with during breakfast, director?'

'The Israelis, Agent David'

Ziva paled.

**TBC…r&R please!**


	3. Chapter 3

Here is chapter 3. Once again thank you Vicky for beta-reading this for me. The last time I uploaded a chapter it turned out that FFN had some malfunction going on. My chapter didn't upload, it didn't appear online until 2 days later. Why, don't know cause I also couldn't reach my account. Sentences written in Italic are Hebrew. Anyway here is chapter 3, read, enjoy and please review.

**Chapter 3**

'That's the reason I did not mention this to you earlier on, Agent David. I did not want you to stress about it until the very last minute. They wanted a meeting before everyone else to make sure we didn't forget the ties we have with them'

Ziva had her poker face back on.

'I am not stressing about it, Director. However in the future I would appreciate it if you gave ME a head up'

'Heads up'

'Excuse me'

'Never mind, Agent David. Do you have problems with the way I work?'

'No sir, none at all'

Ziva grinding her teeth. It wouldn't look good on her resume if it said she had hit the NCIS director in the face but every now and then he would make it very difficult not to.

When Vance and Ziva entered the restaurant she could see by the reactions from the other guests that they didn't know she was escorting Director Vance. He had played them all. She smiled this she liked about him. They sat down but Ziva remained standing after all she was his security detail on this occasion.

'Agent David, join us please' she looked bewildered at Vance.

'Sir?'

'You heard me, eat something. There is another protection detail just outside the door. You are here as my translator right now not as my bodyguard'

She sat down next to a member of the Israeli delegation. He was talking to his colleague but as soon as she sat down next to him the conversation died down.

It didn't take long for one of them to make a sniping remark to Ziva.

'_So you are Eli's daughter'_

'_Yes'_

'_You are the one who left and betrayed us'_

'_Not before you left and betrayed me'_

'_What'_

'_I became loyal to those who were loyal to me and that wasn't Israel anymore, is that so wrong' _

'_No, it's not' _

An elderly man from the Israeli delegation spoke out. He switched to English straight away so Vance could understand the conversation.

'I am ashamed with the way Mossad has treated you. You were one of its best agents and we left you to die. I would like to apologize for our lack in action and Officer Tal you will apologize to Agent David for your insulting words'

The young Mossad officer turned bright red and mumbled an apology to Ziva.

'_Leave the room, you are no use to us if you cannot keep your emotions in check' _

The elderly man calmly said. The young mossad agent quickly got up and left the room in hurry.

'_Thank you, Moshe' _Ziva whispered.

'You are welcome, Ziva. I apologize for his behavior. He doesn't know any better, he has not yet been tested the way we have.'

The rest of the meeting went without a hitch. Vance apparently got what he wanted and the Israelis also seemed to be quiet content with the outcome of the meeting. Ziva and Vance were on their way out when Moshe called out to Ziva.

'_Ziva, may I have a word with you'_

Ziva looked at Vance and explained that Moshe wanted to have a quick word with her.

'_Ziva, I was telling the truth. I am ashamed with the way we have treated you. We take better care of our dead than we did with you if there is anything you need or want I'll be there for you' _Moshe smiled _'within reason of course. I was and always will be your friend' _

Ziva smiled at as well_ 'within reason of course, Moshe. Thank you'_

On their way back to the hotel Vance inquired as to the reason why Moshe wanted to have a word with her.

'He was expending his terrain'

'He was doing what' Vance became curious.

'He was my…mmm how do you say this, my-go-to-guy. Anything I wanted no matter where I was if I called Moshe he would fix it. Cash, identity papers, weapons, cars anything he was the one who would arrange it' Ziva smiled, for a moment she forgot who she was with and went a little too far with some personal details. 'Even if I wanted to have a good time without any strings attached I would call him, he would always set me up with a …'

She all of a sudden realized who she was talking to.

'Tell me I did not just say that out loud did I?'

Vance chuckled. 'He was your pimp'

'My what…'

'Never mind' Vance shot down the conversation before it went too far. They got back to the NCIS ;LA headquarters and Vance went to pick up some more papers before they were heading out again.

Callen, Sam, Kensi and Deeks were doing paperwork when Vance strode by closely followed by Ziva who stopped at Callen's desk to inform whether or not he already decided his next move.

She was introduced to the other team members. Deeks and his mouth were once again getting him into trouble.

'So you are the director's protection detail aren't you?'

'Yes'

'How is it possible that a probationary agent gets such a job, doesn't the director value his life? I mean no disrespect but you have no experience what so ever, that's why you are probationary aren't you. What will you do if you get attacked?'

'I am sure the director does value his life and yes I am a probationary agent' Ziva smiled. He didn't know who she was. This was going to be fun but before she could enjoy making him squirm Vance bellowed out.

'David, I need you in MTAC'

'Yes, Sir on my way' Ziva laughed. She whispered something into Deeks' ear. He grinned goofy.

'What did she say' demanded Kensi.

'She said that it would be honor to get a private combat lesson from the great Deeks himself'

Kensi started to laugh.

'What'

'You have no idea who you are dealing with do you?'

'Enlighten me'

'Well' Hetty walked in on the conversation. 'Agent David is very skilled in hand-to-hand-combat, explosives, knives, weapons, undercover ops. She speaks 9 different languages and is educated in the human anatomy.'

'Human anatomy?' Deeks dared to ask.

'that way she knows what the best way is to kill someone or extract information from a subject' Hetty shrugged her shoulders and walked off heading into to LA's MTAC due to the fact that some disturbing information had come to light that Vance and Agent David should know about cause it concerned the Director's safety.

'Did we teach her that' asked Deeks meanwhile.

'Nope, Mossad the Kidon unit did' Callen answered. 'And we are lucky she decided to join us instead of going into the private sector because if she would have done that we all would be in serious trouble'

'And she wants a private lesson from Deeks' Sam laughed 'it's more like you getting a private lesson from her. She can kill you in so many ways you can't even come up with all of them'

'She was making a joke, right' Deeks squirmed. 'Hey guys, she was wasn't she'

TBC…

**Now that you read it, you might as well leave a review. So push that button and let me know what you think.**


	4. Chapter 4

Thanks Vicky for beta-reading this for me. Read and Enjoy and leave a review

**Chapter 4**

Ziva entered LA's MTAC shortly after Hetty did and saw concerned faces all around, something was up.

Hetty spook up first.

'The Russian delegation has received several threats but only one concerns them. They had to informed us since Director Vance is due to speak with them later today. They believe it's a splinter fraction from the Tsjetsjenie group headed by Basajev. They only want one thing, to kill as many Russians as possible preferably high ranking military's and politicians.'

The room went silent, this was serious.

'Agent David, you'll still be Director Vance's escort. You know what to do. However you will be receiving back up in the form of Agent Callen's team. They are being informed as we speak'

Ziva nodded. She knew what to do. She knew exactly what to do. The Mossad training came back, the killer reappeared. This is what she was trained for, to kill or be killed but this time she had something to live for and that made her even more dangerous.

Vance and Ziva went downstairs and Ziva collected 2 bulletproof vests. She handed one to Vance but he shook his head refusing to put one on. Ziva stepped in front of him when he wanted to leave and head for the car. She silently handed him the vest once more. He stared at her, she calmly stared back. She wasn't backing down. Vance didn't think she would after all she had been dealing with Eli David long before she had met him. He was a piece of cake compared to Eli.

'The Russians will see it as an insult when I show up in a bulletproof vest, agent David'

'Who do you fear most, the terrorists or your wife'

Vance growled and yanked the vest out of Ziva's hands.

'You play dirty, David'

'I'll play any game you'll like if it keeps you alive, Director'

She didn't let him leave before she checked to make sure he was actually wearing one. Hetty and Callen had witnessed the entire incident. Hetty chuckled. Callen smiled.

'He has met his match. He needs that or he walk all over people. He is a good director but he has a tendency to bulldozer people around'

Called nodded he knew exactly what Hetty meant by that. Vance was a good director but you needed to be on his good side if you wanted to get something done. Director Vance was the kind of man that traded favors. He'll scratch your back if you scratch his, nothing was ever done if Vance at one point or another wasn't able to collect and right now he collected the one he had with Ziva. He had given her freedom by speeding up her citizenship approval and right now he counted on her to keep him alive. He didn't agree with the way she did it but he went along with it because he depended on her to keep him alive.

The minute they arrived Ziva felt the hair on her back stand up. She checked out the inside of the building together with Sam and Callen and the rest of his team had done so with the outside of the building. The Russians arrived shortly after they had finished the sweep. The Russians saw Director Vance clearly wearing the vest but didn't mention it during the talks.

A waiter was coming in with the beverages but not before everything he himself and everything he carried was checked. Ziva visible relaxed when she saw who the waiter was, he was the same one as they had had when they talked to the Israeli delegation but still she felt something was off. A female waiter had followed the male waiter into the room. Ziva knew she hadn't been checked and started to walk towards the female. Even in this day and age the men who worked for the Russians had not felt the need to check a female waiter. According to them woman were still something that weren't considered a clear and present danger. Ziva had used the same naive thought herself. Men often let woman out of their site but not Ziva.

She briefly locked eyes with the female waiter and she knew. She was the one.

'Director, GET OUT NOW'

Vance was up in a split second and moved towards the position Sam was in. Sam guided Vance out of the room as fast as he could. Ziva had grabbed the woman who had dropped her tray and was holding a button in her left hand. Ziva saw she had already pushed it. She didn't even think twice, she moved her hand across the woman's and was holding the button in place because if she let go she and everyone else who had remained in the room would die. Ziva all of a sudden felt a sharp pain in her right leg and when she looked down she saw the woman had stabbed her with a knife. The knife remained stuck in Ziva's leg. The pain was excruciating. The woman was still giving her a hard time. She struggled trying desperately to get Ziva off of her. Kicking, hitting even biting but nothing helped. Ziva somehow managed to get a hold of her own knife and then Ziva's training kicked in. In order to survive she had to kill the woman fast. She drove her knife into the woman's stomach just below the bomb vest making sure she was dead before she hit the ground. Both women fell onto the ground, Ziva still clutching the button that the woman was holding. Everything was a blur, all Ziva knew was to keep pushing the button cause if she didn't life would end and her mission to keep the director save would have failed. She was sure of that. Everything was over in just a view minutes, probably seconds.

Ziva knew the entire room was going to be cleared first before they would attend to her and the bomb she was lying on. She could hear an 'all clear' being yelled and someone kneeling next to her. She was lying on top of the woman. She didn't dare to move because she hadn't seen the bomb that was strapped to the her.

'You OK, David'

'Yes, she got me in the leg but other than that I am fine'

'Bomb squad is on the way'

TBC..

The more reviews the happier I become


	5. Chapter 5

Thank you Vicky for beta-reading this for me. Had a little trouble getting this uploaded, all of a sudden it couldn't read this format. What the…I thought. FF has been given me trouble since a week or two and I am apparently not the only one. Let's see if attempt nr.2 will be successful. If you have read the story, please review the story. A big thank you to all those who already have been so kind to do so. It is much appreciated.

**Chapter 5**

Callen seemed very relaxed sitting next to a bomb and Ziva appreciated his calm demeanor.

'What if someone has another detonator and sets it off remotely' Ziva said.

Callen looked at her. He nodded. She was right, they couldn't take the risk.

'Well, let's have a look right, can you get up'

Ziva shook her head and looked at her leg which was soaked with blood. The knife was still sticking out.

'You want me to remove the knife?'

'No, it is lodged in pretty good; I do not know what will happen if you pull it out'

'Sam' Called gestured for Sam to come closer.

'Can you remove David from the body, very very slowly?'

Sam carefully lifted Ziva up and placed her next to the dead body. Both men went pale.

Ziva understood, they thought all the blood on her clothes was hers.

'That's not mine, it's hers. I …sliced her stomach open'

Sam and Called let out a collective sigh.

'Thank God, I wouldn't want to explain to Gibbs that we had let you die while visiting us'

Ziva grinned but groaned at the same time. Her leg was throbbing painfully.

Sam took a good look at the bomb that was strapped to the dead woman's body.

'I think I might know a way'

'You think' both Ziva and Callen responded.

'Well, I am not going any were' deadpanned Ziva 'so give it your best shot'

Callen looked at Ziva and Sam who were staring at him giving him a silent order to move away.

'Hey, I am not going anywhere either. Gibbs would skin me alive if I left her alone'

Sam started to follow the cables from the woman's wrist to her chest, or what was left her chest where Ziva had cut her open.

'Ok, I am about to cut'

Sam, Callen and Ziva all held their breath when Sam cut one of the wires. Silence. Ziva opened her eyes again. They all gave a collected sigh of relieve.

'Ok, you can let go now'

'Are you sure'

'As sure as I can be, we will know soon enough'

Ziva let go of the button and nothing happened. Once again silence filled the room. A huge grin appeared on Callen's face. He hit Sam on the shoulder.

'You did it again, big man'

The paramedics were able to get in as soon as they arrived. Vance was right behind them. He saw them lift David onto a stretcher and he heard her groan through clenched teeth, then he saw the knife sticking out of her right leg. Damn…...he thought. He also saw that she was completely covered in blood. He was shocked.

'It's not hers' He heard from behind him. Callen stood there. 'It's the woman's' Callen's head gestured towards the body lying on the floor.

'Any idea who she is'

'Not yet, but we are working on it. Fingerprints are already on their way to Eric who is running them through all known databases.'

Vance nodded in approval.

'Good, I'll be going with David'

Vance walked briskly behind the two paramedics who were about to load in David.

Callen looked at him in surprise but didn't say anything.

'You didn't have to come with me. I would have been fine going without you, Director'

'I am sure you would have, Agent David'

Ziva's right leg was not covered with a blanket like the rest of her body and the paramedic was cutting her trousers so he could easily access her wound. The knife was still sticking out. Vance could hear the paramedic calling in the arrival time.

'Female, age approximately 30, massive blood loss from a knife wound in her right leg, knife is still lodged in her leg.'

Vance saw David slowly losing her battle against the darkness. She lost consciousness due to the massive blood loss. They arrived at the hospital were a staff was waiting for their arrival. They quickly took her to the operating theatre.

Vance just sat there quietly. He was debating whether or not to call Gibbs right now or to wait after he heard news about David's surgery. He decided to call now.

Gibbs was in Abby's lab with DiNozzo and McGee when his phone rang.

'Gibbs'

'Gibbs' said Vance.

'What happened?'

'David got injured, she is in surgery'

'How bad'

'Not bad, but she suffered some major blood loss'

'How'

'Suicide bomber walked in, she grabbed the kill switch so the bomb wouldn't detonate. The attacker stabbed her in the right leg and the knife stayed lodged inside her leg. They are taking it out right now'

'Are you with her?'

'Yes'

'Are staying with her'

'Yes, I will until she wakes up'

'Good, let me know when and how she wakes up, no matter what the time is'

'All right, I will, Gibbs'

'Leon'

'Yes'

'Thank you for calling'

The two men ended their phone call when it became clear that was all they had to say to each other. There was respect between the two but they both knew it wouldn't go any further.

After a view hours a doctor in his scrubs walked in.

'Leon Vance'

'Yes, that would be me'

The doctor walked over to where Vance was sitting.

'She is going to be fine, she is in recovery right now but if you want you can go see her. She is still groggy. We removed the knife that was lodged inside her right leg. It hit one of the major arteries but we managed to repair that. If she had decided to pull out the knife she would be in much more trouble than she is now, she could have bled to death but as it stands right now she should be able to leave the hospital in a matter of days.'

Vance entered the room where David was sleeping and took a look. She looked pale but otherwise seemed to be doing just fine. He was going to make himself comfortable when he saw her eyelids move. She was waking up and trying to open her eyes.

'Hey, David. It's OK, I am right here. Go back to sleep'.

He heard her sigh softly, felt her relax and fall back into a deep but healing sleep.

Vance made himself comfortable in the only chair in the room. He wasn't going anywhere.

After a view hours he woke up when one of the nurses came in to check up on Agent David.

'She is doing OK?'

'She is fine'

TBC...

R&R please, pretty please.


	6. Chapter 6

The last chapter. Thanks to my beta-reader Vicky once again. Read, enjoy en please review. Another story is on its way. It's finished and will be published sometime next week. It deals with Callen and Ziva. I am also still working on my 2 other stories called Running on empty and Opening up, so to those who read them as well. I haven't forgotten you.

**Chapter 6**

Ziva opened her eyes and much to her surprise saw that Director Vance had stayed with her.

'Good morning, Agent David'

'Director'

'I think in this case you may call me Leon, Agent David'

'Ok, if you call me Ziva .I slept through the night?'

'Yes, you did and on this rare occasion I must agree with Agent DiNozzo, you do snore quite loud'

Ziva snorted. She tried to sit up but when her right leg protested she came to a halt. Director Vance quickly got up and helped her into a sitting position.

'Thank you'

'No, thank you Agent…Ziva. Thanks to you I am still alive and the Russians are equally grateful. They sent the flowers' His head gestured towards the corner of the room.

Ziva noticed them for the first time standing in the corner of the room. It was a gigantic bouquet of flowers.

'When do you think I could leave the hospital…Leon' Ziva found it very odd calling him that.

'I'll ask around, hold on'

Vance left the room leaving Ziva to her own. He came back just a few short minutes later and with him was the doctor that operated on her. After a quick check the doctor gave his OK and told Ziva that she should be able to check out today if she would take it easy. She would need a cane to get around but other than that she would be just fine.

Later that afternoon Director Vance came back to find Ziva already up and about. She was dressed in slacks and a huge NCIS shirt. Callen's team had obviously paid her a visit. He moved his toothpick from one side to the other.

'They gave you agent Hanna's shirt, didn't they?'

She nodded. 'They thought it was hilarious' She chuckled. 'I can almost wear it as a dress'

Director Vance thought she was right. She was drowning in the shirt.

'Ah, well just as long as it will get me out of here I do not mind'

Ziva got up, grabbed her cane and let out a sigh of relief.

'Let's go, Director….Leon.'

She was taking small steps getting used to the cane and her painful right leg. She looked up and before Vance could say anything she had grabbed his toothpick and dumped it in the trashcan.

'What the…'

'Your wife, Leon…your wife' Ziva said while she hobbled out of the room. She was grinning but making sure as hell that he didn't see her doing that.

Vance helped her in the company car and the chauffeur was told to go head to NCIS;LA headquarters.

Once in the LA headquarters she was given a shirt that was more suited to her. Sam carried her upstairs were her own team was eagerly waiting to see her on screen. Vance had called the moment she was cleared to leave the hospital and they were eager to see her.

'Sam, put me down…Sam…oh HARAR…you can put me down you know'

Sam remained stoic and held on to her but after several threats from Ziva he finally let her down gently.

'You Ok, Ziver' Gibbs informed.

'Yes, Gibbs I am fine. It was just a little wound'

Vance snorted. Ziva turned around giving him a look.

'Director Vance, is there something you would like to add'

'Nothing Agent David, I wouldn't dare' Vance held up his hands. He was visibly more relaxed then he had been in a long time.

After the interaction with her own team Ziva grew tired and Vance noticed so he cut the conversation short.

'Gibbs, we will be arriving in Washington this afternoon, will you make sure that a car is standing by to drive Agent David home'

After the link had been cut, Vance turned around and gestured for Sam to carry Ziva back down the stairs. She was downstairs before she could even voice a protest.

The car that would drive them to the airport was already waiting for them. They said their goodbyes and after Ziva had beaten Callen at chess once again, cause he couldn't think of a move to make after her she had given him her move on the piece of paper earlier in the week they were on their way.

Arriving at the airport they were ushered to another runway where a private jet was standing.

'Courtesy of the Russian government, Miss David. A small gift of their gratitude' Ziva was taken aback by this gesture. Vance smiled; the Russians had contacted him earlier to inform how Agent David was doing. He had told them they would be flying back to DC that day. The Russians wanted to do more than just hand over some flowers and had suggested that they would be more than happy to fly them back. Vance had reluctantly accepted. It wasn't policy to accept gifts but in this case he thought an exception could be made but not after he had cleared it with SecNav.

Once in the air Ziva felt a tremendous weight fell of her shoulders. They were on their way back and she hadn't failed on the contrary she had succeeded in keeping him safe and sound. She could rest now, the soft hum of the plane let her drift off to sleep. Job done!

Vance looked over to where Agent David was sitting and saw she had fallen asleep. Vance had enough work with him to keep him occupied so the rest of the trip went by pretty uneventful. They had landed and a NCIS car was standing by.

Agent DiNozzo was already standing by and waited for the plane to fully come to a stop. As soon as that happened he ran towards the door which was opened by the flight attendant. He ran up the stairs nearly knocking Director Vance over.

'Sorry, Sir. Where is Agent David?'

'Last chair on the left, she is still asleep, Agent DiNozzo be gentle.'

Tony looked at Vance in a peculiar way. What the hell did that mean, be gentle? What had happened in LA? Besides the obvious.

He came to a hold when he saw her. He quietly lowered himself onto the seat next to her and brushed a stubborn hair out of her eyes. She woke up.

'Hey'

'Hey yourself. I let you out of my sight even once and you get into trouble.'

'Sorry, didn't mean to' She yawned. 'Where is Director Vance?'

'Waiting outside for us. I am here to take you home'

'Right then, let's go' she wanted to get up but realized too late that her right leg wasn't exactly what you might call up to speed. She groaned in pain.

Tony picked her up and carried her off the plane into his car. There was another car taking Director Vance back to the office and he had come with his own car to take Ziva home. The fact that she wasn't complaining to much made Tony realize that she must be in a whole lot of pain. As soon as they entered her home she wanted to take a shower. After taping in her leg with a plastic bag as good as possible Tony left her to her own devices. While she was in the shower he ordered Chinese and just when she got out the meal was delivered.

Ziva was tired. The meal had been good, but then again Tony knew all the good take-out restaurants in town. She just wanted to go to bed and sleep.

'Oh, Tony before I forget what does it mean when someone is your pimp….'

…

...

'WHAT!'

**The End**

**Don't forget **

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